At 16 years of age, Charlie Woods still has time. The young Woods is yet to make a big splash in the golfing world despite showing promising signs of talent. It is extremely difficult to follow in the footsteps of someone like Tiger Woods, but Charlie Woods is still a long way off. But there are rivals of his that are picking up the pace. Blades Brown is one of them. The young Brown had initially opted against going to college and decided to try and turn professional. In his bid to do that, the young golfer has made a crucial decision that has raised some eyebrows.

The 17-year-old Blades Brown is playing chess while the rest of the world is playing checkers. The young American golfing talent was offered an exemption to participate in the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in Dallas, but instead, he chose to take part in the Tulum Championship at the PGA Riviera Maya in Mexico. A curious decision, right? Well, on introspection, it is as straightforward a decision as they come.

Brown’s goal is pretty simple. He is looking at getting a full PGA Tour card for next season, which is on offer for players in the top 20 of the Korn Ferry Tour list. He very recently jumped from 140th in the standings to 44th after a T2 finish at the Veritex Bank Championship. He carded a 27 under-par score, just three strokes off the lead at the Texas Rangers Golf Club. That was only his third start on the Tour, all three based on exemptions. He is only allowed one more exemption unless he finishes in the top 25 in the week before.

So, Brown gets to participate in the Tulum event without an exemption and increases his chances of improving his points tally and standings to gain PGA Tour status. Fans are heavily divided over his decision, with some complimenting him for such a decision at a young age and others not particularly for it, as he is missing out on PGA Tour experience.

Fans are divided over Blades Brown’s decision

“That is what you call getting it done on the field of play. Earning his way.” One fan stated, expressing his admiration for Brown’s willingness to grind it out and follow the process instead of relying on hand-me-downs or solely on sponsor exemptions.

Another fan looked at the tough journey ahead for the youngster. Brown is a record holder at the Korn Ferry Tour, having become only the second person to make the cut at two events on the Korn Ferry Tour before turning 18. He did so at the Club Car Championship and the LeCom Suncoast Classic, where he finished T41 and T51, respectively. The only other player to do it was 4-time PGA Tour winner Kim Si Woo. So, the youngster is in good company in terms of achievements, and hence his willingness to fight for a PGA Tour card is a no-brainer. Especially since he followed the two made cuts with a runner-up finish at the Veritex Bank Championship. “He only has one more invite exemption on the KFT for the year, so it would all come down to that one event. Tough choice, though, to give up a spot on the PGAT for sure.” The fan explained his thoughts.

Brown has currently played in 4 PGA Tour events so far. He has only made the cut in one of them. While this is normal for someone his age, valuable experience at the highest level of professional golf is important. However, he cannot rely solely on exemptions on the Tour and will need to earn a more permanent Tour status. This is exactly why he has opted to go for the Korn Ferry Tour event in Mexico rather than compete at the PGA Tour event in Texas. One fan commented with this in his mind, stating, “Long-term Blades’ decision is one hundred percent correct. Best path to status vs. potential short-term gain.”

Another fan also said it was a smart choice, but that Brown was very lucky to be able to get exemptions to the events. His talent did the work for him, but the exemptions could have easily gone any other way as well. “Smart choice—very lucky to have exemptions. Very few would get this man—many could have parlayed them too,” the netizen stated.

While he is not using an exemption this time around, Brown did use three exemptions to compete in the three events before, which likely took a spot from another golfer who is fighting for a spot. This did not sit well with one fan who believes that Brown should continue to play tournaments relevant to his age rather than take up a spot in a pro tournament. “Under-18s have no business playing in pro tournaments. Bad Parenting. These dudes get burned out, and expectations are too high.” The fan lamented.

What do you think of Blades Brown’s decision? Is it the right call at this stage of his career?